The family business · First term · № 21
China gave preliminary approval to 38 Trump trademarks covering hotels, golf clubs and other services
- Date
- , China Trademark Office publications, reported by the Associated Press
- Subject
- China
- Benefit
- Gifts and payments
- Government
- China
- Beneficiary
- Donald Trump and DTTM Operations LLC
- Topic
- Ethics & conflicts
- Era
- First term
What happened
China's Trademark Office published provisional approvals for 38 Trump trademarks on February 27 and March 6, 2017, covering hotels, golf clubs, spa and massage services, insurance, finance, real estate, restaurants, bars and a class that includes bodyguard, social escort and concierge services, the Associated Press reported on March 8, 2017 from public documents. Trump's lawyers had applied for the marks in April 2016; all but three were in Trump's own name, with three Scion hotel marks registered to DTTM Operations LLC, a company Trump owned 100 percent as of May 2016. Formal registration followed if no one objected within 90 days. Hong Kong trademark consultant Dan Plane told AP he had never seen so many applications approved so quickly, while a Beijing lawyer who has represented the Trump Organization said she saw no special treatment. Trump Organization chief legal officer Alan Garten said the registrations were "a natural result of those longstanding, diligent efforts" and that the company had no plans to operate an escort service in China. Senator Ben Cardin said Beijing had come to appreciate the return on "a positive, personal business relationship with the President." Freedom House rated China Not Free in its 2017 report.